State to boost food licenses from 200,000 to 500,000 in two years

Kolkata: The state government aims to increase the number of food licenses issued from 200,000 to 500,000 within the state in the next two years through the expansion of licensing among small food business operators.

Amitava Datta, Additional Secretary, of the state’s Food Safety Branch emphasised the importance of inclusivity by announcing an expansion of licensing among small food business operators at an event organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and Food Safety Department of Bengal government titled “Strengthening the Food Safety, Quality and Regulatory Ecosystem: Towards Enhancing the State Food Safety Index”.

Tapan Kanti Rudra, Commissioner, of Food Safety Bengal emphasised that effective food safety interventions are vital for addressing non-communicable diseases in the country. Inoshi Sharma, Executive Director FSSAI, highlighted the new digitisation initiatives on the Tatkal scheme’s focus on streamlining documentation processes. Emphasis was laid upon the importance of compliance to ensure food safety. Additionally focus would be towards augmenting the Hygiene Rating and Eat Right programs. Efforts would be made towards training 200,000 trainers in the eastern region in the coming years.

Sandeep Kumar, Chairman, CII West Bengal State Council in his remarks, mentioned the significant shift in the behavioural pattern of consumer behaviour and outlined the importance of such collaborative initiatives towards building a sustainable and resilient food ecosystem. The State Connect session – West Bengal was a unique and timely initiative which focused on strengthening the interface with stakeholders and enabled them to obtain an update on recent developments in

regulatory compliance.